Eichten's Hidden Acres east of Center City crafts all-natural cheeses the old-fashioned way.

The concept of “green getaways” is taking off as more people plan trips to enjoy the local flavor of a destination and visit environmentally friendly sites and businesses.

Renewing the Countryside is an organization working to strengthen rural communities in Minnesota in ways that sustain the environment and local economies and cultures.  One of their projects is the promotion of “Green Routes,” designed to help travelers “discover small, unique businesses that are rooted in their community.”   The routes identify eateries that serve locally grown food, places to meet local artists and see and purchase their work, and sites that focus on local heritage or that preserve the area’s natural environment.

The Green Routes website outlines eight routes around Minnesota, with more on the way.  Along the Minnesota River Valley Green Route between Redwood Falls and Ortonville, for instance, you can: taste local wine at the Fieldstone Vineyard, enjoy Fair Trade coffee and homemade pie at the Java River Café in Montevideo, visit a potter in his studio at Tokheim Stoneware, learn about the area’s Dakota Indian heritage at the Lower Sioux Historical Site, watch migrating waterfowl at the Big Stone National Wildlife Refuge, and spend the night at a cottage on a farm or at a small B&B.

Or, you can plan your own green getaway or day trip using the Minnesota Home Grown directory, available in print or online.  Published by the Minnesota Department of Agriculture, this comprehensive guide has descriptive listings of farmers’ markets, orchards, pumpkin patches and much more, organized by county.

Chisago County, on the northeast perimeter of the Twin Cities area, offers a rural experience close to the city. Start your visit at a farmers’ market in North Branch or Lindstrom on Saturday mornings.  Then, head to Eichten’s Hidden Acres east of Center City, where 13 types of all-natural cheeses are handmade here in small batches, the old-fashioned way; try their specialty, Dutch Gouda.  They also sell lean bison meat, from the large herd that grazes on the farm’s pastures.

Further east, toward Taylors Falls, Pleasant Valley Orchard features Minnesota apple varieties along with hayrides.  And near Lindstrom, kids can explore two corn mazes and pick out their jack-o-lantern at Tom’s Pumpkin Farm. At WineHaven Winery, northwest of Chisago City, the tasting room offers samples of their reds, whites and honey wines; the Peterson family, who operates the vineyard, also produces four types of honey, including one from Minnesota wildflowers.

Sunrise River Farm, east of Wyoming, also offers their own honey, plus jam and preserves and 27 varieties of apples fresh from the orchard. Kids enjoy the farm’s animals, including pot-bellied pigs, miniature ponies, chickens and llamas.

The Chisago Lakes area was settled by Swedish immigrants, and the town of Lindstrom still reflects this heritage, with a Scandinavian bakery, signs in Swedish, a coffee pot water tower, an immigrant homestead cabin and statues honoring Swedish pioneers.  In just a day or two, visitors to the Chisago Lakes countryside can get a taste of its fresh foods, farms and local culture.

FOR MORE INFO:
www.greenroutes.org
www.minnesotagrown.com
Or, order the Minnesota Grown directory from Explore Minnesota Tourism: 888-868-7476.